Receive the latest local updates in your inbox

A NJ Transit train got stuck in a tunnel near Penn Station on Friday evening, leading to delays across multiple transit lines just a week after a derailment near the station caused a days-long commuter nightmare. Ray Villeda reports.

(Published Friday, April 14, 2017)

A train with about 1,200 passengers became stuck in a tunnel between New York and New Jersey for nearly three hours on Friday, the latest in a series of recent rail problems plaguing the metropolitan area.

The New Jersey Transit train became disabled in the Hudson River tunnel late Friday afternoon, when Amtrak was experiencing overhead power problems. A New Jersey Transit spokeswoman said the train finally reached New York's Penn Station in the early evening.

As passengers were departing the train a man in the station became belligerent and sparked a stampede among people leaving the overcrowded station, but police said reports that gunshots were fired at the station were false.

The loss of power caused delays of an hour or more on Amtrak and New Jersey Transit. It happened three weeks after the derailment of an Amtrak train at Penn Station and a week after a New Jersey Transit derailment shut down eight of 21 tracks there and disrupted travel in the region for days. No injuries were reported in any of the incidents.

Widespread Delays After Train Gets Stuck in Penn Station Tunnel

no description

(Published Friday, April 14, 2017)

One passenger from Friday's train, Mia Sanati, described a scene of confusion.

Sanati said she and her husband were headed for the New York International Auto Show when they boarded the train in Secaucus, New Jersey, at Secaucus Junction, the last New York-bound stop before Penn Station.

She said shortly after the train entered the tunnel to go under the Hudson River, they felt a bump on the side of the train and saw sparks.

As riders waited and plans changed - they were told that the train would be towed, then that it would be evacuated - some tried to make light of the situation or scooted over in their seats to make room for people who were standing. But others were shaking, pacing, saying they had to get out or mulling about walking through the tunnel, Sanati said.

After the electricity came back on and the train started moving, there were cheers, said Sanati, who lives in Lyndhurst, New Jersey, and just finished a doctoral program in mass communications.

Adam Rosen, a chemical engineer going to Hamilton, New Jersey, said, "They keep extending the delays from 45 minutes to 90 minutes and now indefinitely. This is the worst."

New Jersey Transit executive director Steven Santoro said in a statement to affected riders, "we deeply apologize for your experience, and I would like to hear from you."

NJ Transit spokeswoman Nancy Snyder said the railroad was working with Amtrak to determine the cause of the problem. Amtrak issued a statement about the delays but didn't immediately respond to emails seeking further comment.

Disabled NJ Transit Train at Penn Station Mucks Up Evening Rush

A disabled New Jersey Transit train in one of the Hudson River tunnels at Penn Station is jamming up other trains at the start of the evening rush Friday.

(Published Friday, April 14, 2017)

Pandemonium erupted at the overcrowded station when rumors of a shooting apparently were sparked by a disturbance caused by one of the passengers from the stuck train. People screamed and ran, leaving the station strewn with abandoned bags.